Flamengo suspends contract with Peruvian star Paolo Guerrero
Flamengo has suspended the contract with their star, Peruvian Paolo Guerrero, after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) extended his doping ban from 6 to 14 months this week, ruling him out of the 2018 Russia World Cup.
"We confirm that the athlete's contract is suspended," said the press office of the popular Rio de Janeiro club on Friday.
"Any further action will be discussed internally at the club, after receiving the legal reasoning of the CAS decision," it added.
The 34-year-old captain of the Peruvian national team has a contract with 'Mengao' until August, and the Brazilian sports press already considers this as the end of their relationship.
'El Depredador' Guerrero was a key figure for Flamengo's goal of winning the Copa Libertadores de América after 37 years, and also a pillar for the Peruvian national team, which returns to a World Cup after 36 years.
The most popular club in Brazil qualified for the round of 16 in the continental tournament on Thursday.
The player has not commented on the 'Fla's decision yet, but he did want to shut down rumors that he would be considering leaving his national team.
"I would never resign. I want to play for my country! I am to the death with my national team!" the Peruvian stated in an Instagram message.
The historical top scorer of the Peruvian national team also assured that "I will continue on the path of truth, proving my innocence."
In his fight to find a way for the suspension to be lifted, he met on Thursday night with Edwin Oviedo, president of the Peruvian Football Federation, "the details of which will remain confidential by mutual agreement," announced the Federation on social media.
On Wednesday, the coach of the Peruvian team, Argentinian Ricardo Gareca, asked in a press conference for the overturning of the verdict against the Peruvian captain and called on the international association of football players to act against a sanction that he considered unfair.
Guerrero tested positive for the metabolite of cocaine benzoylecgonine, a substance included in the World Anti-Doping Agency's (WADA) list of prohibited substances, after the Peru-Argentina match on October 5 in the South American qualifiers.
The player was initially suspended for one year, causing him to miss Peru's World Cup playoff against New Zealand in November.
But FIFA announced in late December that his sentence had been reduced to six months, although WADA appealed and requested a suspension of 1 to 2 years.
In January, 'Fla' announced that it was temporarily suspending the contract with the forward until he was unable to fulfill his commitments.
The 6-month suspension expired on May 3 and the player reappeared three days later with the Brazilian team, awaiting the TAS's verdict, which ultimately extended the ban to 14 months.
Guerrero began his career in Peruvian club Alianza Lima, and after spending a decade in German football, he landed in Brazil in 2012 to play for Corinthians, where he stayed for almost three years before signing with Flamengo in 2015.